Learning Catamaran Sailing

I want to beef up my resume and gain experience to Captain a 40-45ft. Catamaran in the summer of 2020. I'm not real keen on ASA classes, I'm just not particularly interested in getting certified. I'd like to sail for 2-3 days, gain practical experience in the differences between mono's, cats, and managing two engines, and boost my confidence with these boats.

I've sailed considerably as a younger man (10+ yrs as owner) and by this time next year, will have Captained 2 BVI charters on mid-size boats.

Anyone have any suggestions on who to contact or how best to gain that experience?

Thanks in advance.

If you have captained two mono's in the BVI's transitioning to a cat is not a big deal. To get acquainted with the cat in 2020 you could hire a day captain for the first day or two if needed to show you the ropes.

Once upon a time I used to teach the ASA Cat course. There are some differences, all can be sorted in a day, if I was in the islands I would show you the ropes. Like monohulls there are good cats and bad ones, but unlike 30 years ago, most are good cats. Avoid the cats with far aft steering as you will have no bow visibility.

Items to address:
The main is a lot harder to raise as it is a double purchase
Anchoring as the the boat will swing differently, setting a bridal is very important
Tacking is a bit different, not always needed, but sometimes it helps to back wind the jib for a second.
When tacking you need to pay attention to your jib sheets they can can caught on the mast
Motoring on 2 engines is a piece of cake. We used to practice at Leverick Bay or Sydneys at JVD. Grabbing a mooring is so much easier, you just need to play with your engines a bit to know how the boat reacts. A cat will quickly stop dead in the water a monohull will glide for a while.

Mike’s got it.
Boat check out will be most important as systems are different. But as you know how to sail, dont stress.

Twins 20 feet apart is a dream! Lock the wheel when going astern, use the throttles. Practice helps. I remember my first time backing into a slip at Leverick. I was a wreck (mentally). Tito and his guys were such a big help!

Good you tube stuff out there too about docking, anchoring, balls and bridles.

As Mike said, at low speed (forward or back) use engine throttles, not wheel, to drive boat. An exercise I always did with willing crew was - in a mooring field I would instruct them to (using only throttles) back the boat away from mooring, turn right angle and go to downwind of another mooring, another right angle turn to face next mooring, go straight to that mooring. Typical reaction first time was to spin in circle, turn much to far, not understand what downwind means, etc. However, one 20-something took the helm the first time and executed everything perfectly. When I congratulated him and asked him how he did it he said, "simple, it is just like a video game!"

Hey Pearson,
Not sure where you're at in VA but you may want to check out Annapolis. I did a 2 day Cat/Bare Boat combo course a few years ago for the same purpose, prior to my first sailing trip. I did it with Sail Time since they had a small Bay Cat to take out. Good peace of mind for me before heading to BVI (but prob not necessary with your experience).

Sorry, forgot about this post while I was away researching ways to get that experience. I collected a few quotes and ultimately decided to do as you suggest; tack on a few days at the beginning of the charter, get a captain, and learn the differences.

Ha..thanks for the offer! I will charter from a modern charter agency, so expect FP, Lagoon or other recent cats, most if not all of which have the raised helm. I appreciate the tips on the main, anchoring and tacking, which surprises me about backwinding the jib. Perhaps, I could see backwinding in lighter air, but in winds like in the BVI's? But like you suggest, one of the hot topics is managing dual engines. I understand the virtues, just no practical experience. Thanks for taking the time to reply!

Exactly JPhart, that's one of the reasons I want to get that practical experience is to take the time to learn the different systems on a Cat.

Funny, but I too stressed when backing into a slip in Leverick. The owner of a sailing school was in the adjacent slip, and graciously offered to help out, along withTito's team. Made it super easy as I was a bit rusty. Thanks for the YouTube suggestion. I've seen a few on managing docking maneuvers and will continue to beef up those skills.

Thanks Brian. Annapolis is easily within reach but I haven't considered Sail Time. I'll look them up. I did contact a charter agency out of Annapolis but a 3 day charter was way too expensive. My experience is dated, an older boat, few of today's modern systems like this new fangled self-tailing winch fad, so getting hands on, I believe, will greatly improve everyone's trip.

As it stands now, and based on discussions with the charter agency, I'll add 3 days on to the charter. It's still expensive, but I think it's going to get me to where I want to be, experience-wise. I'll spend 2 1/2 days picking the brain of an experienced Cat captain, and learn a bit about all you guys have mentioned like maneuvering on dual engines, tacking and setting a bridle. Once the remaining guests arrive, I'll be confident I can handle the boat on my own. Thanks for the replies.

As one of those potential guests, get all the experience you need. We'll see how well we do in a couple of weeks! ;-)

I think that backing the jib is a good idea most of the time. The tacks are so slow otherwise that if you don't properly instruct your crew on how to back it, you'll stall and it's a pain. One of the things that made me most nervous about monohulls was docking and maneuvering in a crowded anchorage/marina. Cats make it a breeze. You almost can't go wrong if you're not afraid to give it some throttle and make it turn. Don't touch the wheel while at slow speeds. It'll just confuse things, especially when going astern.